Hamtaro: Distance
by Tsukaimon
Summary: It has been five years since Hamtaro left on a journey. Bijou is losing her mind waiting for him to come home...
1. Chapter 1

Thunder clouds loomed over the forest. Boss stared out the clubhouse window, flinching as a crash of thunder sounded. As he fell, he heard the sound of breaking glass, and he looked up to see he had broken Bijou's teacup that Hamtaro had made by paw.

"Bijou," he gasped. "I'm sorry, I--Bijou?" The snow-white hamster wasn't looking at him. Her sapphire eyes stared at the door. He stared at her confused, and watched as the door open. He saw her eyes light up hopefully, only to be filled with sadness as she saw it was Pashmina who had come in.

"Phew," she sighed, shaking the rain out of her golden and white fur. "it's a downpour out there. Penelope and I are soaked!"

"Ugh, my hat got soaked, okwee!" Penelope whined, taking off her favorite yellow hat to reveal her brown and white fur. Pashmina smiled at her companion.

Pashmina blinked at Bijou, then looked at Boss warily. "How long has she been like this?" she asked, looking at Bijou once more, who was still staring blankly at the door.

Boss looked at Bijou with a worried face. "All day. She hasn't even touched the sunflower seeds Oxnard gave her, but I know she's hungry..." he sighed. "The thing is, I can't figure out whats wrong with her."

Pashmina lowered her voice when she spoke. "Of course she's not eating, Boss. Don't you know what day it is?" Boss blinked at her, confused, and she sighed in frustration. "It's Bijou's birthday."

Boss seemed surprised for a moment, then nodded, "I see," he looked at Bijou with sympathy in his eyes. "I wish there was something we could do for her."

Pashmina sighed and shook her head, "There's nothing we can do, Boss. She's like this every year." Pashmina proceeded to pick up the pieces of Bijou's shattered teacup. "I'll have Panda fix this later." she told Bijou. Bijou nodded absently, as if she didn't realize Pashmina was there, not taking her eyes off of the door.

Boss stood up with a sigh, walking toward his bedroom door, when he heard a soft voice murmur, "Hamtaro...." Boss looked at Bijou, his heart wrenching. How he wished he could help her.

_Why...?_ Bijou thought to herself. _Why did he have to go?_ Bijou stared into the fireplace of her own room, remembering all the times Hamtaro had saved her. She remembered the final words she could have said to him, she should have said to him, before he left. _"I love you."_

She watched as the flames danced, reminding her of the times she and Hamtaro had done just that, danced, and had fun. She looked at the table with the letters that Hamtaro had sent her. These were old letters, though. She had stopped waiting for Hamtaro's letters so long ago...

Bijou reached into the bowl on the small table beside her, putting an acorn in her mouth.

_Five years..._ she thought with a sigh. _When is he coming back...?_

END OF CH. 1


	2. Chapter 2

_"Happy birthday, Bijou!" her orange and white knight in shining armor said with a smiled, holding out a small, paw-made teacup. Gasps came from the rest of the ham-hams as he put the teacup in her paw._

_Tears welled up in her eyes. "Hamtaro..." she sobbed. "Thank you." She saw a few of the girl ham-ham's eye her enviously, though they still smiled at her happily._

_It came as a bigger shock when Bijou wrapped her arms around Hamtaro's shoulder's, giving him a big hug...well, as big as a hamster's hug can be._

_No one looked _too _shocked, except for Boss and Stan. Hamtaro didn't look shocked, either, he simply returned the hug. An "AWWWW~" was heard from Pashmina, but other than that, everyone stayed quiet..._

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_"What do you MEAN your leaving?!" Boss cried, slamming his paws down on the small table in the Clubhouse, making Bijou clutch her teacup tightly._

_Hamtaro nodded slowly, avoiding Boss' gaze. "WHY?!" Boss yelled louder, snarling. Bijou began to tremble._

_"To help Bijou," he answered simply. Bijou was touched that Hamtaro would go through this to help her, but she knew that if he left, there would be no certainty that he would return._

_"Hamtaro, I know of Bijou's disease, and I understand why you would want to go find a cure, but..." The sympathy in Boss' eyes was replaced by a look of fury. "You're not even certain if there IS a cure! How can you just leave us behind on a slim chance like THAT?" Bijou flinched, but Hamtaro wasn't vexed._

_"Boss, Bijou will not survive unless a cure is found," his amber gaze narrowed. "and no one else will go and look. Everyone else is so afraid to look. That's why I'm going to look."_

Hamtaro..._Her eyes filled with tears. She couldn't believe he would go through all this just for her. The other ham-hams obviously couldn't believe it, either, because they gawked at Hamtaro with their mouths hanging open._

_"Hamtaro..." Howdy began, though he was silenced by a stern look from Dexter._

_"I forbid you to go," Boss said defiantly, crossing his arms. "and thats that."_

_Fury burned onto Hamtaro's face, looking as if he could scorch the clubhouse with just a glance, "I'M GOING, BOSS! NO ONE CAN STOP ME! NOT YOU, NOT BIJOU, NOBODY!" And with that, he stomped to the clubhouse door and slammed it shut, leaving everyone staring after him with astonished looks on their faces._

_-----------------------_

_No one talked to Hamtaro the entire day. Everytime someone opened their mouth to talk to him, he glared at them with such fury that they flinched. No one was angry with him, though they still didn't want him to leave._

_It wasn't to long before sunset came that Hamtaro was packed and ready to go. All of the ham-ham's gathered to see him off. Bijou was directly in the front, staring at him with wide eyes._

_Hamtaro shook paws with some of the hamsters, and some he hugged goodbye. When he got to Bijou, he stared at her for a long while, then hugged her, too, "Goodbye, Bijou...take care of yourself while I'm gone, okay?" She nodded into his shoulder, the tears falling._

_He smiled at her, whispered on last "Goodbye" before walking over the hill. Hamtaro was a long ways away when Bijou finally called, "Hamtaro, I--" she tried, but she couldn't finish her sentence. She fell to her knees, sobbing. _I love you.

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Bijou shot awake, cold sweat on her white fur. She shook her head from side to side, wanting to dismiss the memory from her mind. Her mind kept repeating what she should've said. _I love you. I love you. I love you..._

END OF CHAPTER 2


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